Final Fantasy Redeux
by Alrynnas
Summary: SOLDIER vs l'Cie. Midgar vs Tenebrae. Gaia vs Pulse. FFVII/FFVIII vs FFXIII/FFvsXIII. As the war rages on, loyalties and friendships are tested. Will they have the strength to do what is right? Noctis/OC/Cloud
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**: Was wondering whether to post up this story or not, but, eh, why not? Please be kind xD

This story is a crossover between a few Final Fantasy games, but the main ones being VII and XIII (hence the crossover category this is in).

In this, you will see characters from **FFVII**, **FFVIII**, **FFXIII** _and_ **FFvsXIII**. Was considering having more show up, but then I wanted to keep the number of games limited.

Please know, this story came about because I wanted to write something with Cloud and Noctis in it (my personal favourite Final Fantasy guys). As such, the characters seen in here are completely biased towards who my friends and I like.

I consider this a "fun" fan fic where it's a quick and simple plot. So please understand this if you go onto reading the story. It's a light read directed at the fans of the games listed above (and mainly for fangirls, woo...). Many moments are based off what happens in VII and XIII (hey, it is a crossover!)

Just because something is one thing in the game, does not mean it will be the same in this (ie: fal'Cie in this are not the same as fal'Cie in FFXIII, anything like that will be explained in the story). So please no comments like "that's not how it is in the game". Go with the flow of the story, kay?

This story starts off mainly in the FFVII section of the "world" and more FFXIII will come in a few chapters later.

I hope those that read this still end up enjoying the story and relationships~

* * *

I

_"My family's moving..."_

_ "To where?"_

_ "I don't know..."_

_ "Will I be able to see you again?"_

_ "I...don't know..."_

_ "...I got it! I'll join SOLDIER! That way I'll hopefully be able to find where you are some day."_

_ "You'd...join SOLDIER?"_

_ "Yeah! I'll join up as soon as I can and find you. I promise."_

_ "All right. It's a promise."_

Water rushed from the faucet, the odd droplet joining that which flowed down the drain when it dripped from San's face. She gripped the sides of the sink as she stared unblinking at her reflection. After a few minutes, she held her hand under the cold water and splashed some more over her face. It helped to wake her up in the morning, splashing the cold water over her face, especially after a bad night's sleep.

A knock at the door brought San from the thoughts that lingered on. Sighing, she turned off the water, making sure it would not drip. "You done in there yet?" asked Alvina.

Running a hand over her face, San turned and opened the door to the bathroom. When she opened it, the redhead was standing in wait, arms crossed. It was not in an annoyed manner, at the least, she was just waiting for her roommate to finish up. "Yeah, sorry about that," muttered San as she ran a hand through her black hair.

"Another bad dream?" questioned the redhead in the brief moment they were parallel to each other. San was silent for a minute. Though Alvina knew about them, that did not mean that San enjoyed talking about the matter.

"Yeah," she answered. She looked down at her hands, trying to make sure that she understood she was now in reality and out of the dream world. "They're happening more often..."

"Maybe you should see someone about it." Alvina slung the towel she held over her shoulder as she gave her roommate a concerned look. "It may be nothing, but better safe than sorry. 'Sides, I'm sure they could give you something so that you wouldn't dream."

San waved the matter aside. "Not like it's been affecting my performances. It's just annoying to have the same blasted dream again and again."

"All right, all right," sighed Alvina, letting the matter slide. "Just don't go letting it degrade your performance today of all days." The redhead sniffed and flicked San across her forehead.

"I won't, I won't," assured San as she waved Alvina's hand away. "Just hurry up and take your damn shower."

The redhead made a noise in success as she headed to the bathroom. "Who's gonna win today?" she asked as she closed the door behind her.

"Team Havoc!" cheered San back. A soft chuckle escaped her as she went on to don her uniform for the day. It had been six years since she joined SOLDIER, with each day being as tough as the last. She had not given up though, and had made it through the rigorous training to become known as Osana "Silverblade" Aella. Through the years, she had made some friends in training, Alvina Kimberley being one of them. Through luck, they had been put on the same team for the final assessment for a SOLDIER recruit. The two women trusted each other completely, now they only hoped the other members of their team would be able to pull through.

:::

"All SOLDEIRs fall in!"

"Yes sir!" answered the SOLDEIRs in unison as they shifted into perfect lines and stood to attention.

"All recruits here? Good." The commanding officer Zack Fair smiled as he looked over the sea of faces. Placing his hands on his hips, he began to walk back and forth in front of the rows. "Today is the day I'm sure most of you have been fretting over: assessment day. The day where your first rank is chosen. Don't let it get to you if you don't make it to the rank you want, there will still be plenty of time ahead of you to reach your goals! Today, you will be evaluated on your performance both as a team and on your own! I have only one word of advice before the trial begins. Actually..." he paused for a moment before looking back over the crowd. "This is an order." Reaching back, he drew forth his sword and held it before him as though all his hopes and dreams rested in it. "Never lose your dreams," he called out clearly, lowering the sword. "Also, no matter the situation never let go of your pride as a SOLDIER. Got it?"

"Yes sir!" barked out the recruits.

"Good. Make sure to do your best today." He gave one last look to his sword, holding it high above them all to see. "Let's go!" With a final salute, the SOLDIER recruits hurried off to their starting locations. "Team Havoc!" he shouted out as the recruits continued to rush by. Four of them slowed down and headed over to where Zack stood.

"Yes sir?" they asked in unison when they came to a halt.

"Give it your all today. And don't let me down. I've got gil riding on you guys," he added with a wink.

"Ah, right...sir," the four fumbled, not expecting such a thing to have been said. Without waiting for anything more, Team Havoc quickly rushed off to their starting position.

"Man, to think he'd go and tell us something like that moments before we begin!" sighed out Alvina in annoyance.

"Either let it be more motivation to do well or forget about it, whichever works better for you," commented Cloud Strife, the third member of Team Havoc.

"Whatever. Let's just get through this," grumbled Squall Leonhart as he loaded up his rifle.

"C'mon guys, we're Team Havoc. Commander Zack just placed gil on us since he he knew it would be such a safe bet." San smirked lightly as she lowered her helmet after trying to reassure her team. "Time to mess the other teams up..."

A blaring horn filled the air and the final assessment was on. It was a survival match. Ten hours would pass before it was over. It was not only other teams out there, but fiends were out prowling the different areas of the battleground. The death-toll may be low for the final assessment, but one did exist. It was just one more way to weed out the strong SOLDIERs from the weak. They had made a promise to each other, Team Havoc, that they would be among the ones to finish.

Panting hard, San crouched behind a bolder. Only an hour remained and all of her teammates still survived.

"We should head over to that cave; it's a better defensible position to run out the clock." San pointed over towards a cave that had to be no more than a few hundred feet away.

"What if there are already recruits in there?" asked Alvina.

A smirk crossed San's face behind her helmet. "Then we kick them out."

"It's clear. We should go now while we can." Squall rose up slightly to get ready for when they would make their move.

"All right. Move out!" barked out Alvina, taking the lead. Rushing to stay together, the other three of Team Havoc were quick to move on her order. It was going so well, they were nearly there, when out of the blue, San fell to her knees.

"Dammit! A time like this!" she grunted to herself as flashes from her dreams overpowered her senses. The light that called her seemed so far. Her body disintegrated each moment it was away from the light. No matter how hard she tried, she could not reach it. All that happened in less than a second, but it was enough time to open her defences. A fiend leapt upon their group and singled out the weakest one at that moment. Sharp claws dug into its captured prey and the two tumbled away.

"Keep going!" shouted out San as she tried to get the monster off of her, her flash of a dream done. To lose now, this close to the end, she would not have it! The rest of her team hesitated for only a second before following her order. They needed to get a hold in the caves before they could do anything else.

"Dammit!" cursed Cloud under his breath before turning around. "San!" he yelled out, racing to aid her. Raising his rifle, he took aim and shot at the fiend that was having trouble biting through San's own gun. The fiend shrieked out in pain as it flailed about. San took that moment and managed to scramble away from it, drawing her sword.

"I told you to head to the cave!" she shouted back at Cloud as she moved in for a killing blow to the fiend.

"Yeah, you can thank me later," sighed the blond as he shot the fiend to make for certain it was dead. "Let's go!" San rushed towards him as quickly as her wounds would allow her. Cloud began to back up towards the cave, all the while covering her to make sure no more surprises would get them.

Less than an hour to go...they would make it through!

:::

"Team Havoc!" they cheered out, raising their drinks and clanking them together. As one, they drank from their mugs and lowered them back down, empty. The assessment had finished, and the ranks had been given out. It was the best they could have hoped for: all four of them had made it to 1st Class SOLDIER. Tonight was their night to celebrate along with all others who passed the assessment.

"Whew, man! What a tough ten hours!" laughed out Alvina. She brought her mug to her mouth one more time to make sure all of it was drained.

"Not tough enough to stop us," commented Squall, shrugging lightly.

"You're not Team Havoc for nothing!" cheered out a new voice. Looking up, the team members saw who had joined them.

"Commander Zack!" they nearly choked out in surprise.

"Zack, Zack!" he laughed out, waving the matter aside. "Just Zack now, 1st Class SOLDIERs," he grinned at them. "Well done today, you guys were one of the best groups we've seen in years."

"Yeah, all save for one at the end," smirked Alvina as she shot San a look.

San's cheeks reddened in embarrassment. She did not like remembering that the fiend had nearly gotten her so close to the end. "Shut up!" she hissed at her friend as she sent a kick to her under the table. The smirk widened on Alvina's face as she moved slightly. San's brow furrowed in confusion for a second just before her foot came into contact with someone's leg, but it was not Alvina. Cloud was the one to wince and curse under his breath. San quickly had a look of regret and muttered an apology to Cloud.

"Now, now," laughed out Zack, "she did her best under the situation, and Cloud did well by going back to help. But, still, by being the one to almost die near the end, you're gonna be the one to help me get the next round of drinks for you guys. Come on, San." Tossing his head to the bar, Zack headed off without even waiting to see if San would follow.

"Yes, sir," muttered San before catching up.

"You're one of the best swordsmen we've seen in a while, Silverblade," grinned Zack as he took two mugs. "Might even be able to rival Sephiroth."

"Ah, I wouldn't know about that," chuckled San to try to brush the matter aside.

"Well, you might win if you don't have another episode like you did today in the middle of a battle."

San froze in her step. Not even her other teammates had noticed her breakdown out on the field. Was there really nothing the commanders did not know about the recruits? "It...it won't happen again," she murmured, walking once more.

"How long have you had these dreams?"

"Nearing on ten years now... They've gotten more frequent recently, but this was the first time something happened while I've been awake."

"You're a good SOLDIER, San. Despite having these dreams for all this time, you've still managed to become 1st Class. I won't force you to do anything at the moment, but if it happens again while you're awake like that, go to our doctors. Got it? It's not an order, but rather a request from a concerned friend."

"Yes, si—" The look Zack gave her stopped San in mid-word. She chuckled swallowed before chuckling wryly. "You got it, Zack."

"Right! Well, you guys have a good evening!" he clapped San on the back after he placed the mugs he had carried down on the table.

"You're not staying?" asked Cloud.

"Nah, I got a date!" Grinning, he waved before heading off.

"Treat Aeris well!" shouted out Alvina after him. Zack raised his hand to show that he heard before hurrying out of the SOLDIER-filled place.

"Well, now that we're 1st Class, how long before do you think we'll be thrown into the war?" asked Alvina as she took a swig from her new drink.

"Who knows," shrugged Cloud. "It's been pretty quiet recently. Maybe not for a while."

"Could be tomorrow, could be a week from now, could be a month. It's the life of a SOLDIER." Squall was quick to bury himself in his drink once he finished speaking.

"We can only wait and find out," sighed San as she looked down at her drink. The thought now of having her dreams affect her while awake began to frighten her. What if it happened at another critical moment? She had gotten lucky today, but what if she really ended up dead next time? She did not want to die because of something like that.

"Well, well, well. Lookie who we have here. If it isn't the 1st Class newbies," smirked someone new. Looking up, all of Team Havoc raised their eyebrows at the newcomer. "Doesn't Shin-Ra have enough Mako-infused pawns to deal with already, yo?"

"You're a Turk then, aren't you?" asked San, looking at the two men from over the rim of her mug.

"Oooh, and five points to the lady! Name's Reno and this here's Rude." The redhead that had goggles on his forehead gestured with his thumb to the guy standing next to him.

San's expression fell slightly. "You wear sunglasses while inside?" she murmured before taking a sip of her drink.

Rude shuffled his weight slightly. Reno laughed as he clapped Rude on his shoulder. "Ah, don't worry bout it. We're here to congratulate you guys. Been a long time since people have scored as high as you did in the final assessment for SOLDIERs. 'Sides, good to make friendships now, who knows how often we'll end up working together." His eyes shot to Alvina for a second. "Which I hope is fairly often."

"Well, you guys can become all buddy-buddy. I need some fresh air," sighed San, rising.

"All right, free seat!" cheered Reno before she had barely moved a step away from her chair. Shaking her head, the black-haired woman was quick to head outside before anyone compelled her to stay and talk. It was not that she did not like the Turks, she was just honest about needing some fresh air. She could only stand bars for so long.

A sigh escaped her as she was met by the cool air of the night. Stepping to the side of the door, the new 1st Class SOLDIER leaned against the wall. Since she was alone, San allowed herself a smile. She had made it to being a 1st Class SOLDIER. "Osana Aella, SOLDIER, 1st Class." A light laugh escaped her. "I like the sound of that..."

"It does have a nice ring to it," came a second voice. San quickly stood straight, her hand instinctively reaching to where her sword would have normally been. She sighed once she saw who it was and was able to relax once more.

"Cloud Strife, SOLDIER, 1st Class. That also has a nice ring to it," she grinned to him as he stood beside her.

"If you say so." His smile was hidden in the darkness.

"So you left Alvina and Squall to deal with the Turks?"

"They can handle themselves. Besides, I think that Reno likes it better with fewer of us around."

A snort of a laugh escaped the black-haired woman. "That obvious to you too, huh? Ah well, I'd rather be out here anyway." Her gaze moved skyward. Up on the Plate, nothing blocked the sky above. "If it weren't for the sky, that is," she whispered.

"What was that?" asked Cloud, looking to her in the night.

"Nothing." She shook her head to move past what she had said. "Thank you..." she finally added.

"For what?"

"For coming back to help me with the fiend. It's embarrassing to admit it, but I'm not sure if I would have been able to get it off of me long enough to kill it if you hadn't come to help."

"Don't mention it. I'm just glad I was able to help." Silence fell between them. The bustling noise from inside was loud enough to reach them, but it was thankfully a light hum in the background. "Why do you dye your hair?" Cloud finally asked.

San was truly caught surprised by the question. "What?" she asked back, unable to find her voice for anything more.

"Your hair." Turning to her, Cloud pointed to San's hair. "Isn't it really blue? I've noticed the roots now and then. Why do you dye it black?"

Consciously, San gripped her hair. "I don't really want to stand out too much with it. As a part of SOLDIER, I thought it would be a good idea to hide anything that would be able to make me stand out too much from the others. You know, in case something should happen with the enemy while out there."

"Still, would be nice to see it in its normal colour one day."

A small smile parted her lips. "Maybe... Some day..." She glanced to Cloud before looking to the sky that she feared once again, whispering, "Whenever I fulfil my promise..."

* * *

**A/N**: Hm, not the most exciting way to end a chapter, I'm sure, but it had to end somewhere.

Oh, and if you're wondering, Cloud's personality is meant to be more like he is in Crisis Core compared to VII or Advent Children. Why? 'Cause all the bad stuff that happened to him (Mako poisoning, seeing his friends get murdered, etc) _don't happen_! So he's a bit less brooding in this...for now.

If anyone's wondering where Noctis is, he comes later.

Hope at least some people are interested in reading this xD More to come soon~


	2. Chapter 2

II

"Man, who'd of thought we'd get our first assignment today?" asked Alvina as she let out a huff. The redhead placed her hands behind her head as the group waited out on the helicopter pad.

"Comes with the job," shrugged Squall.

"At least it means we're done with training," added San. "We've certainly had enough years of that."

"But does the training ever really stop?" asked Cloud. Murmurs of agreement rippled through them. As a SOLDIER, they would never stop learning new ways to fight, having to adapt strategies to fit the situation and so on. Though they were done the years of rigorous training, there were still many things for them to learn.

"Good! You guys are already here," grinned Zack as he came out to where they waited. The black-haired SOLDIER greeted the members of Team Havoc with a wave and a smile. Though he had been in SOLDIER for a long time now, Zack had never once lost his bright disposition on life, unlike many other members had. It took a great strength to remain the way he did after dealing with so much. "We'll wait until the others get here before explaining the rest of the assignment." The only part of the assignment that Team Havoc knew of so far was that they would be going into enemy territory.

"The others?"

"Ah! Speak of the devils!" Lights flared down on the SOLDIERs from above, a sudden strong wind rushing up. Raising his hand to block the glare, Zack looked up to the helicopter that was readying to land. When it did, only one person jumped out, the lights still so bright that he was silhouetted for a moment. After the person waved an arm, the helicopter shut down and the bright lights were shut off, revealing who it had been.

"Ha! Didn't think I'd be working with you guys so soon!" laughed out Reno as he headed to the group of SOLDIERs.

"We're working with the Turks?" asked San flatly.

"Orders from the higher ups. This assignment is pretty important," commented Zack.

"If it's so important, why are we here?" questioned the brunet. "We are kinda new to being 1st Class members."

"Doesn't matter how long you've been one, what matters is the effort you put into getting there. Besides! I'll be working with you guys!"

"Well, nice to know we have you guys guarding us," grinned Reno. "Guess we can rest easy now!"

"'We'?" blinked Cloud.

"Where's your bald friend?" smirked San.

Reno gave out a dry laugh at her comment before looking over his shoulder. "Oi! Hurry up ya slow poke! We don't have all night, yo!" he called back to the helicopter.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" shouted back a voice from the far side of the cockpit. "Didn't you know the hero is always the last to arrive?" grinned a fairly burly man with shaggy blond hair. "Snow Villiers at your service."

A hearty laugh escaped Zack. "So you're a hero too, huh? Good. Having more heroes on board should make this go better." The laughter died off and Zack was quick to become serious. "All right, this assignment will take us into Pulse's capitol, Tenebrae. We've received intelligence that they are planning on creating a new weapon to use against us. Our assignment is to infiltrate the building in question, asses the threat, and, if possible, destroy the new weapon."

"Heh, just tell me what and I'll take care of blowing it up," smirked Reno, his voice full of confidence.

"It's our job to make sure we can all get inside. Due to Pulse's alert state, we won't be able to land for the drop off, and we're unable to make a pre-planned pick-up zone. As such, even once we're done our assignment, we'll have to be careful until Snow can get to us."

"I'll be there to grab you guys out in no more than five minutes. You can count on that from from a hero at least," grinned the blond Turk.

"We don't know much about the layout of place at the moment. As such, we'll either find out something there, or just wing it. So, all we can do now is get on over there!"

"Sir!" saluted the members of Team Havoc.

Zack sighed and placed a hand on his hip before chuckling softly. "I told you there's no need to call me that any more!"

:::

Reno opened the doors of the helicopter, wind lashing in at them. The night air was pleasantly cool, at least.

"We're at the drop zone! Go when ready!" came Snow's voice over their ear pieces.

"Time to jump!" shouted out San before she leapt from the helicopter. The others were quick to follow to make sure they all landed close together.

"Good luck!" was the last thing Snow said before the Turk was quick to leave the area and out of radio range.

Wind rushed into their faces, threatening to tear their very skin away. The goggles they wore at least helped with allowing them to still see. Being at the head of the jump, San was the first to reach the ground. While most people would have met their deaths by taking such a drastic jump with no parachute, the members of SOLDIER had other means. Moments before she would have hit the ground, San threw down a gravitational device. Any guards that were in its area of effect were tossed aside, giving San room to land, and thanks to the properties of the device, her landing was safe.

The 1st Class SOLDIER took the moment where the guards were stunned and surprised at the sudden intruder to take them out with her gunblade that could easily switch between being a sword and a gun; it had been her choice of weapon when becoming 1st Class. While she exceeded at the skill of the blade, there were times when a ranged weapon would be useful. Her judgement was quickly proven correct by clearing out the landing area they had marked. Dusting off her hands, San looked back as the others landed around her.

"Man, just had to go and take all the fun, huh?" asked Alvina as she rose up from her landing.

San gave a nonchalant shrug. "You guys were late."

"_Late_? We were a moment behind you, yo!" blurted out Reno.

"Exactly."

Cloud sighed and shook his head, keeping Reno from protesting any more. "Just forget about it..."

"All right!" hushed Zack, motioning the others to gather around. "If we haven't already been noticed, it won't be long before the enemy forces are completely alert to our presence here. We need to move quickly. As far as we know, the new weapon is being developed deep underground, so that's the general way we're gonna be heading. Okay? Let's do this!"

The group began to make their way through the building, meeting only minimal force. Any time they came to a door that was locked, it was left up to Squall to crack the code. They had broken their way past five doors and were finding their way down when the alarm finally went off in the building.

"Tch, took them long enough," scoffed San as she slung her gunblade over her shoulder.

"We haven't been here that long," came back Reno.

"Exactly. I'd have expected more from them."

The redheaded Turk was about to open his mouth for more of a retort when Cloud shook his head again. "It's best to learn now that it's not a good idea to argue with her..."

"Noted," sighed Reno. The Turk then looked to another one of the SOLDIERs there. "At least not all SOLDIERs are like that, eh, Alvina?" he asked with a grin.

"Focus, guys," commanded Zack as he jumped down a flight of stairs. More enemy troops attempted to stop their advancement into the building, but they were hardly any match for the SOLDIERs. But, as they made their way deeper and deeper into the facility, they were finally met by something else than just normal troops.

"Well, well. I was wondering when guys like you would show up. At least this means we're on the right track!" laughed out Reno as he flourished his baton to the group of five men ahead of them.

"Surrender, and your lives shall be spared," said the man in the middle of the group.

"First off, surrendering is never an option for a SOLDIER. Second, we would never surrender to a bunch of fal'Cie scum like you," came Zack, taking a step forward. Raising his sword, Zack rested his forehead on the wide blade for a moment. "Never let go of your pride as a SOLDIER..." When he lowered the sword, there was an anger in his eyes. "Come and get it!" shouted out Zack as he charged for the fal'Cie. Readying their weapons, the other SOLDIERs were quick to join in the fray.

Fal'Cie, a person enhanced by what those of Pulse called the Gift of the Goddess, Etro. Though possessing different abilities, fal'Cie were at a similar level to a SOLDIER, for SOLDIERs were enhanced by Mako Energy. As such, this fight between SOLDIER and fal'Cie was taking longer than their previous bouts against the normal troops. Zack was able to kill off one on his first strike, since he did not give them time to prepare. The other four fal'Cie were left to Team Havoc since Reno hung back.

Squall was second to down a fal'Cie with his own gunblade. Unlike San's, though, his could not change between the two. Next was Cloud. While at one point the fal'Cie had immobilized the use of his sword, Cloud knew something that the fal'Cie did not: his sword was actually six swords in one. By separating them, he caused the fal'Cie to be surprised long enough to deliver a killing blow. Alvina was the only one who did not rush in to meet her enemy. Instead, she danced back, keeping a safe distance away from the fal'Cie. Smirking, she threw out one of her spiked chakram towards the fal'Cie...only it went wide. The fal'Cie she faced laughed and charged for her, confident, when he suddenly fell dead before her. Walking forward, Alvina pulled her chakram from the fal'Cie's back.

San's battle, oddly enough, was taking the longest. As soon as the fal'Cie had appeared before them, pain shot through her head. It was the same pain she felt in her dreams and that she had felt during their final assessment. Though minor, it was enough to keep her fighting to her fullest. It spiked for a moment, allowing the fal'Cie to knock her gunblade from her grip, and also the materia that she kept on her. For the first time in ages, fear nearly gripped her.

"No!" she shouted out, holding up her hands in defense as the fal'Cie lunged for her. To her surprise, the fal'Cie then let out a scream. Blinking in confusion, San looked and saw the fal'Cie lying dead before her, his body charred lightly, as though he had been struck by lightning.

"San!" shouted out Cloud, rushing to her side. He stared between her and the fal'Cie before he reached down and picked up her materia and gunblade, handing them back to her. She muttered a quiet thanks to him, unable to look him in the eye.

"Nice job on getting your materia to work on the fal'Cie, it normally doesn't. Guess he was distracted enough that the attack got through," commented Zack, securing his sword on his back. San could only mutter something in agreement. Shyly, she glanced up to Cloud who had a worried expression on his face. He had been the only one to see that she had not been able to use her materia. Somehow...she had killed the fa'Cie with magic even though she had no means to do so. "Let's keep going!"

Deeper and deeper the group travelled into the building, not stopping until they got to where they needed to be. They had gone so far that the designs of the place were in no way akin to that of the topside image of the facility. This, they hoped, was a good sign.

"I can't open it," sighed out Squall in frustration. The brunet ran a hand over his scarred face. For one who showed such little emotion, this was clearly angering him.

"Dammit. This has to be the final place!" came Zack. Frustrated himself, he kicked the shield that blocked the door that barred their path. It glowed red for a moment and shot Zack back. The SOLDIER grunted and dusted himself off as he stood back up.

"So what are we gonna do now?" asked Alvina, looking between the other members there. "We just gonna call it quits and head on out while we can?" From the tone in her voice, it was clear that was not what she wanted to do.

"Let me try something," offered San, taking a step forward.

"And just what are you gonna do? Shoot at it?" questioned Reno as he crossed his arms.

"I'm gonna do _something_."

"And what will _that _do, yo?"

A sigh escaped Cloud while he pinched the bridge of his nose. "What did I tell you about arguing with her?"

"Get back, don't look, and cover your ears. I have no idea what'll happen," warned San as she drew forth her gunblade. As she headed for the shielded door, she did not look back to see if the others had listened to her or not. They had to listen. Despite her trust in them, save for the Turk, San did glance over her shoulder just to check. A soft sigh of relief escaped her. None of them could know what she was about to do.

Reaching out, San placed her hand on the shield. It resisted her, but since her movement was not forceful, it could not send her flying. The SOLDIER closed her eyes and concentrated. It worried her that she could feel the source of power for the shield, for it was the same power that the fal'Cie had in them. As far as she knew, people of Gaia were not meant to sense it, to harness it and use it. Ever since coming to Tenebrae, it had been lingering on the back of her mind.

"Please..." she whispered, trying to control the power she could feel for just long enough. "Please open," she begged of it, bowing her head.

She did not know how. She did not know why. For some reason, whatever San did worked. The shield blocking the door faded away and the door itself opened. San stared in amazement...and fear. What was going on with her. San shook her head and cleared her throat. There was no time to worry over such things, there was a job for them to do. Steeling her expression, the SOLDIER went back to the others and got their attention.

Reno whistled in praise. "What did you do to get it open, yo?"

"Trade secret," shrugged San.

"Whatever it was, well done," praised Zack as he clapped her on the back. Drawing his sword, he took lead into the dark room ahead of them. The others were all as happy they could continue on...all save Cloud. Lingering back, he tried to hide his concern for what was happening. Sighing, he hurried after his group before he got left too far behind.

Light illuminated the room as they headed down the stairs. A gasp escaped each of them once they saw what was inside. Pods that glowed teal from the glass openings went on for row upon row. Tubes and various other cables ran into each, delivering whatever it was inside the pods needed.

"This...is the new weapon they're developing?" questioned Alvina as she headed further into the room.

"It's more like...a hatchery..." thought Squall aloud.

"Maybe they're just power cells?" voiced Cloud, his footsteps echoing as he walked forward.

"Whoa!" cried out Alvina, falling to the ground in surprise. The others rushed to her as she panted hard in panic. Pushing herself away, Alvina raised a shaky hand and pointed to the pod that she had just been looking into. "Tho—those are no friggen power cells, man."

"What the...?" murmured Zack as he moved forward to take a look. Placing his hands on the glass, he peered inside. He could not have been looking in for more than a second before jumping back. "Bloody monster!" As the commander stepped back, the others moved to take a look in to see what had caused the SOLDIERs to become so unsettled.

"It really is a monster..." breathed out Cloud, starting to feel sick.

"Just...what the hell is that thing?" asked Squall, bracing a hand on his forehead.

"I didn't want to think the suspicions were true... And here I thought only Shin-Ra was sick enough to make stuff like this..." coughed out Reno, his face twisted in pain to see the perverse creation in the pod.

"Reno, you know what the hell that _thing_ is? What _all_ these things are?" asked Zack, making a sweeping gesture with his arm to the other pods.

"This is the new weapon Pulse is making to fight us...a new kind of troop to use in battle..."

"_What_?" barked out Alvina as she found her feet again. "You mean to tell me we have more than just fal'Cie to worry about now?"

"We've always had more than just fal'Cie to worry about." Only Zack was not surprised at the Turk's words. "Pulse has..._had_...three basic types of troops to use against us when fighting. You got your common infantry men, trained to do whatever's needed, they're your normal humans. Then there are the fal'Cie, normal humans enhanced by the Gift of the Goddess, whatever the hell that's meant to be. But, they're basically like you SOLDIERs; enhanced humans. Then there's the l'Cie. We try to keep their existence a bit quieter since they're much more powerful, probably only a few 1st Class SOLDIERs could beat them one-on-one—I'd put my money on Sephiroth. The l'Cie didn't have the Gift of the Goddess given to them like the fal'Cie, the l'Cie were born with with and it's quite a different result. I won't go into the detail of them, but they are tough.

"And now there's this...the Cie'th. Monsters created who have been bred completely on the Gift of the Goddess...just like Project S that Gaia started, only they're using Mako Energy. Both sides are equally sick when it comes to stuff like this."

"So their new weapon...are these _monsters_?" questioned Alvina, not wanting to believe people could be so twisted.

"And both sides are making abominations like this?" asked Cloud.

"It's still a weapon," came Zack, crossing his arms. The ebony-haired man sighed before looking back up at them. "And we came here to blow up the weapon if we could, which we can. We'll discuss moral issues later, no matter how horrific it may be now. Reno." The redhead stood straighter once his name was called. "Get ready to blow this joint. We'll follow the tubes and cables to get as close as possible to where these monstrosities are getting their energy from. Once it's set, we gotta get the hell out of here."

"Hey...where did San go?" asked Squall. The others all blinked in surprise. With the shock of finding out what had been inside the pods, none had noticed that San had not been with them. They quickly spun around to try and spot her, but the woman was no where in sight.

"San!" shouted out Cloud as he ran through the room. With how close the pods were to each other, there were not many places she could have gone to, at least that is what he hoped. The stairs before him were nothing as he scaled them two at a time. He barely noticed the newly-opened door he hurried on through. Only once he saw San standing still did he stop. "San! What did you find?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady as he headed to her side.

"Etro... That's the name of the Goddess Pulse believes in, right?"

"The Goddess that gives the fal'Cie, l'Cie, and now the Cie'th their power... Yep, it's Etro," answered Reno as the rest caught up.

"Then...who is that...?" Raising her hand, San pointed to the far side of the cavernous room. Inside here, there was but one glass pod large enough to hold a person. Inside was a woman, tubes attached to her like some sort of twisted science experiment. Atop of the pod was a plate...with the name Etro on it.

"This...is Etro?" breathed out Cloud.

"Maybe they just named her after their Goddess," figured Alvina.

"It looks just like Jenova," hissed out Reno.

"All right, that's enough of this place," grunted Zack. "Reno, set the bomb here for thirty minutes. Hopefully that'll give us time to get out of here."

"It won't like you if you do that..." murmured San, still staring at Etro. For some reason, she seemed to be entranced by it.

"Gee, what gave you that idea?" asked Reno back sarcastically. With a push of only a few buttons, the Turk quickly set the explosives he had placed to go off in thirty minutes. "All right! Let's get on outta here!"

"That...might be harder to do now..."

"The hell you going on about? Let's go!" Reaching back, Cloud had to pull San along to make sure she was with them. Something was wrong with her, and they were not sure what. After rushing down the stairs to the main chamber, the group suddenly stopped.

Barring their path before them was a giant robotic monster that was focused on them.

"Yeah...I can see why that'd make it harder to get out of here," muttered Alvina as she drew her chakrams.

"You kidding? We're SOLDIER! Let's kick its ass!" cried out Zack before he went rushing in. All joined in the battle against the mechanical fiend...all save one. Falling to her knees, San clutched at her head as her friends fought as fast as they could to bring their adversary down. The light that had been in her dreams now bombarded her again...only this time, it was far worse than ever before.

Lightning flashed in the air as Squall cast his spell. The electric attack stunned the machine long enough for the SOLDIERs to deal a great amount of damage to it, yet it still had the ability to fight.

"Damn Pulse machinery. I think I'd rather fight a fal'Cie!" called out Reno as he bashed in one of the machine's sensory inputs.

"Careful what you wish for!" called back Zack as his powerful blade sliced through one of the legs. "Get back!" he suddenly shouted. The tail of the monstrous machine had been risen for some time, yet only now did it show what threat it was. A laser had been charging at its tip, and was about to be released. Each of those that fought dived out of the way to hide behind some pod or other form of defense...leaving only one still in the line of fire.

San remained in the main walkway, on her knees, clutching her head, and her body shaking.

"Move!" shouted out Alvina and Zack.

Cursing under his breath, Cloud dashed out from his position, hoping that he could move fast enough. The other SOLDIERs shouted at him to stop, but he did not. The laser fired...and hit the area where San had been, and more. Protecting her as best he could, Cloud kept San safe beside one of the pods as the laser continued to fire.

"Make it stop...make it stop...!" breathed out San.

Cloud tried to comfort her, but she was as close to hysterics as possible. "Don't worry...we'll stop it," he reassured her as the laser finally powered down. Once again, all but San returned to the battle. With having just used a great amount of energy, the machine was in a greatly weakened state. The SOLDIERs and Turk used this time to do as much damage as possible to hopefully destroy it.

Blades sliced through the metal of the monster, cutting through wires and other electrical pieces alike. A well-placed exploding bullet from Squall was the final hit needed to take the enemy machine down. With sections still short-circuiting, the machine fell upon its own weight and remained still. There was no more threat from it.

"San! Are you okay?" called out Alvina as she rushed to her friend's side. Her shaking had since ceased once the enemy had been defeated. Rising, San still had a hand clutched to her head in pain.

"It's gone...for now..." she murmured, walking out towards the rubble.

"What's gone?"

"Dammit. We'll talk about this later. Right now we have to _move_!" ordered Zack as he jumped over the toppled foe. Taking San's hand, Alvina helped the confused SOLDIER as the team made their way out. Sirens wailed in their ears, signalling to those inside the building to get out. It made it surprisingly easier for the SOLDIERs, for that meant fewer people they had to fight against. As they came over a bridge that led to a neighbouring building, they had to stop.

"Not more..." groaned Reno, his shoulders drooping.

"How much time's left?" asked Cloud as he eyed the three men that were blocking the bridge.

"Not much. And I'm not in the mood to find out if here's a safe distance or not."

"You guys have gone far enough!" shouted out the man in the middle of the three. With his build, scruff, and the scar on his face, he looked the most imposing of the group.

"San!" shouted out Cloud in concern as she suddenly fell to her knees again.

"Run..." she hissed out. "Run... They're...l'Cie!"

"Ah? A SOLDIER that can tell what we are? Not bad," laughed the blond of their group.

"Three l'Cie to take care of us? Man, we must have annoyed some people," taunted Alvina.

"Keep them busy. Maybe the blast will take them out from here too," considered Squall, readying his gunblade.

"If you think that bomb of yours will harm us, think again," countered the third l'Cie as he pushed up his glasses.

"So what's the plan?" asked Reno in a hushed voice.

"Three l'Cie... I say we capture them," grinned Zack as he drew his sword.

"Capture? Are you crazy?"

"Nope. I'm a SOLDIER. And as such, we never lose our dreams. Also, no matter the situation, we never let go of our pride as a SOLDIER."

"Again with that speech?" grinned Alvina as she rolled her eyes playfully.

"Heh, gotta make sure it's drilled into those thick skulls of yours!" The playful smirk on Zack's face vanished. "Come and get it!"

The l'Cie were mildly surprised at Zack's show of bravado, but their surprise did not last long. Though it was three against five (for once again, San could not fight), the odds were still in favour of the l'Cie. One second there would be an opening, and the next, the SOLDIER would be easily parried. Fal'Cie were on a similar level to that of the average SOLDIER, but the l'Cie...they were far more powerful.

"Reno! How much time's left?" asked Zack as he pushed himself up. Having to fight on the confined bridge did not make things any easier. Each of them had signs of being in a fight, while the l'Cie were barely breaking a sweat.

"Any minute now!" shouted the Turk back.

"I hope you guys have a real blast when it goes off," taunted the scruffy l'Cie.

"That's one of the lamest things I've heard in a long time," grunted Alvina as she rolled back from an attack. The SOLDIERs were cornered in against the l'Cie and could barely keep fighting. Smug as ever, their enemy began to move in.

"STOP IT!" shouted out San. As her voiced pierced through the air, the three l'Cie froze in mid-step. Looks of shock crossed each of their faces while the other SOLDIERs were confused. Stepping forward, it was Reno who tested the situation. The Turk flicked the scruffy l'Cie across his forehead and in retaliation all he could do was grunt. Slowly, a grin spread across Reno's face.

"I like this. Hey, what materia did you use to do this, yo?" he asked a stumbling San. The Turk blinked to see her in such a state though she had barely done any fighting during the mission. Sheathing his sword, Cloud hurried to her side to aid his friend.

Zack pushed one of the l'Cie who easily moved from the force, but otherwise did nothing. It was as though magic held the l'Cie in place. "Wonderful. Let's take them and get the hell out of he—"

The explosion that travelled up from below cut Zack off.

The SOLDIERs fell from the shock of the explosion while the l'Cie managed to stay frozen in place. Heads throbbed as they all rose back up.

"What kind of a bomb was that?" grunted out Alvina as she shot a glare to Reno.

"One of out best," he managed to laugh back.

"Wonderful. Now let's move!" shouted out Zack as he grabbed the collar of the nearest l'Cie. They had barely started to move with the l'Cie in hand before the creaking of metal reached their ears. Glancing back, fear crossed their faces once they saw the bridge was falling out from beneath their feet. "RUN!" The l'Cie were easy enough to move, but San was another matter.

Holding onto her as tight as he could, Cloud tried to help San along quickly. Never had a bridge felt to be so long. The others had already made it to the other side as he felt the part of the bridge beneath him starting to give out. "Jump!" he shouted, pushing off from the ground. Somehow, San managed to do so as well, but it was not enough.

Cloud landed on the edge of solid ground while San fell short just behind him. The weight of her falling down brought Cloud stumbling back and sliding off the edge. Their comrades shouted out in protest and Squall managed to grab hold of Cloud's other hand, preventing the two SOLDIERs from falling to their deaths.

"Pull them up!" ordered Zack as the others scrambled to help.

"Just let me go!" coughed out San as she looked up to Cloud.

A frustrated grunt escaped Cloud as he held on tighter. "Not planning to!" he shouted back. As much as he did not want it to happen, he could feel San's grip slipping from his. His shoulders felt like they would be torn from their sockets as he was slowly being pulled up. With each movement he got closer, the more he could feel his hold on San slipping.

"It's not...your fault..." she breathed out.

"NO!" he protested, but it was too late.

San's hand slipped from his, and she fell into the darkness.

"San!" shouted out the others once they saw what had happened. It was no use. She was gone. Cursing to himself, Cloud helped the rest by pulling himself up the rest of the way. His breathing ragged, he looked down into the black abyss. Their first mission as 1st Class SOLDIERs...and they had already lost one of their team.

"Come on, we need to get out of here," said Zack, a lot quieter than before. The others only hesitated for a second before continuing on with the last leg of their mission. Being last to follow, Cloud swore under his breath before catching up.

It was proving to be rather hard to not blame himself.

* * *

**A/N**: And let the brooding begin.

If anyone's wondering, yes, San's gunblade is meant to be like Lightning's gunblade from FFXIII (just different colouring).

Snow is the ONLY FFXIII/Versus character on the FFVII/VIII side. Why? One of my friends really likes him and wanted him on this side.

Stay tuned for more!


	3. Chapter 3

III

Blazing light shone brightly towards her. Never before had she been so close to reaching it. However, now that she was close to it, she could feel it start to burn her body. Was this to be the rest of her life? No matter what path she chose, would she be destroyed? Away from the light, she could not survive, her body would start to disintegrate till it was no more. Close, the light burned every part of her it reached, slowly making it so she could not survive.

_Help..._she pleaded out.

_Why do you need help_? a voice asked back. It was comforting somehow. Soothing, it reached out to her.

_I...I'm afraid..._

_Afraid of what?_ There was something else. To the side of where she was, another light sparked. Unlike the one before her, it did not burn her body the stronger it grew. Intrigued, she headed towards it and was no longer in pain.

_...I don't know... Myself...I guess..._

The voice laughed, but it was not in a mocking manner. _Why should you be afraid of that? It's silly._

_ It...is?_

"Hey, you okay?" asked out a voice from somewhere else. Unlike the calming voice, which had an ethereal quality to it, this one was grounded in reality. It pulled her from both lights and back to the waking world. For now, at least, the dreams would be bothering her no more. "Hey!"

The lights fully disappeared and darkness engulfed her. It was not like that for long. Opening her eyes, San's vision was greatly blurred. Cool light trickled down to wherever she was, calming her much in the way the voice earlier had. Grunting, she blinked a few times until her vision cleared and she could see even the dust that hung in the air. The light from above still dominated her field of vision, blocking out anything else that might have been there. She tried to move her hand to her face, but her sore body would not respond. "Is this...heaven?" she asked, her voice raspy.

"No such luck," answered the voice that had woken her. "Don't think a run-down church in the slums could be called heaven." Moving into San's line of sight, the person blocked out the light and so she could finally see who it was. A man with dark silvery-blue hair stared down at her with an intrigued expression. He tilted his head to the side slightly. "Better than hell at least, though, right?" A slight grin curled up at the corner of his mouth, hoping his joke had amused her.

A wry laugh escaped San but she soon stopped for it hurt her to even do that. "That would depend on your opinion," she groaned out, smirking slightly.

"Can you move?" asked the man as he stood back up straight.

"Can I? Probably. Do I want to? Not really," she coughed out. Rolling on her side, San pushed herself up until she could sit properly. Her hand became cool as it slipped into a liquid. Blinking, she looked down to her and and the ripples that spread out across the surface of the water beside her. It was only then did she realize that her legs were damp and her pants clung to her skin.

"You were in the spring when I found you," answered the man before she even asked.

"How long...have I been here?" she questioned while looking around. Other than the water inside the building, the place was much of what one would expect of a run-down church. There was only one thing that had survived the time: a large artwork of an ethereal woman. With the amount of detail in it, San could only figure she was important to this place.

"Not sure. You were in the water when I came here a few minutes ago. I pulled you out and then called out to you, that's when you woke up. Now, I suppose you fell from above since that hole wasn't there the other day." The man pointed up to the ceiling where there was a break in the beams. Flashes of what had happened above came back from her memories. The last thing she remembered seeing was Cloud's face before the darkness had engulfed her.

"I'm gonna kill that Reno when I get back," groaned out San as she ran her hand over her face. While it had been the l'Cie that delayed them in their escaped, the SOLDIER still wanted to partially blame the Turk. It was not as though the bomb had to be as powerful as it was. "Well, still, thanks," she muttered, looking back up to the dark-haired man, "Mr...?"

A soft smile parted his lips before he answered: "Noct."

San nearly fell under her own weight for her limbs went weak. "No way..." she whispered. Was it really possible? It had been years... But... The hair, those eyes, there was the slight chance... "Noct...as in...Noctis...Caelum?"

Noct blinked in surprise. His eyebrows lowered as he stared at San skeptically. "How...did you know that?"

"So it really is you..." For a moment all she could do was stare at him. There had not been a day that went by where she had not at least thought about him in some way...him and the promise that was made. "Don't you remember? It's me, San."

"San," he breathed out as if unsure whether or not that had been what she really said. "Osana Aella?" he asked back.

"You got it," she answered.

For a moment, Noct seemed to be trying to hide his happiness. As much as he did try, the look escaped through his eyes. Before long though, his expression grew stern. "How do I know you're not lying?"

San's expression fell. "If you think I'm lying then you are a good-for-nothing spoiled Plate brat after all."

A tense moment passed between them as the two stared unwaveringly at each other. It was Noct who broke the tension as he laughed out. "Okay, okay, you are San all right. Sorry, I just wasn't expecting you to have that hair or eye colour."

San glanced up at her dark bangs. "That's...another story."

"Guess we have a lot to catch up on. At least you managed to keep the promise, right?"

The SOLDIER gave a firm nod before lying back down and staring up to the sky far above. "Yeah...the promise we made on that day..."

:::

_San climbed up the old jungle gym in the park. Down in the slums of Midgar, it was one of the few places that an opening in the Plate above allowed the sky to reach through. A few stars shone down through the night sky onto her as she pulled herself up onto the top. As much as she would have liked to have been first, someone was already there._

_ "Took you long enough to get here!" laughed out Noct as he made sure there was enough room for her to sit. Noctis Caelum... They had been friends for a few years now, keeping each other company and playing in the Slums. While San was from the area, he was not. His family lived up on the Plate, giving him an easier life. As he had explained to San, he did not always enjoy that life. Coming down to the Slums let him escape from it. And, despite being from the Plate, San did not resent him for it. Never did he act like a spoiled Plate brat. Being with him...it made her feel like a normal kid._

_ "Oh, be quiet. I happened to lose track of time. 'Sides, you know I really don't like coming here."_

_ "Still afraid of the sky, huh?" he asked, looking back up towards the small patch of it above them. The few stars that could be seen through the smoke of the Mako Reactors above glistened lightly. Each year their brightness seemed to grow dimmer and dimmer. It was the price of Mako Energy: an easier life style at the cost of the beauty around them. "Why are you so afraid of it anyway?"_

_ Pulling her legs up, San rested her chin on her knees. "It's just...so scary." She shook her head slightly at the thought. "So vast and so unknown... It's always there. Even if you have a roof covering you or the Plate, it's still there, waiting, like a pair of eyes that won't let you out of their sight. It just...scares me."_

_ "San..."_

_ Laughing out, San looked over to Noct. "It's not so bad when you're around, at least. You're the one sky I like after all." The young boy blinked a couple times before he too joined in her laughter. The meaning of his last name was _sky_ after all. For a while now he thought she had disliked him for it, but, as he happily found out, she did not. "What about you? Still having those bad dreams?"  
Noct became quiet and slowly nodded. "Yeah... And they're not getting any better."_

_ "I wish there was something I could do to help."_

_ "You already do help!" San looked to him in surprise. As far as she knew, there was nothing she was doing that could help his dreams become better. "Just knowing that I get to see you the next day gives me the strength to face my dreams while I sleep." Smiling at each other, silence settled in. At least she was of help, even if it was in just a small way. "My family's moving..." Noct finally muttered out._

_ A light gasp escaped San as she looked at him in surprise. "To where?"_

_ Shaking his head, Noct looked away. "I don't know..."_

_ "Will I be able to see you again?" It took a lot to keep the sadness from her voice. Her best friend was leaving... Though she did not cry all that often, this was enough to make her want to._

_ A cold wind blew past them, adding to the sombre feel of the moment. "I...don't know..." he finally answered, unable to face her._

_ San bit her bottom lip to make sure she did not cry in front of him. Looking up to the sky, the young girl cursed at it. She felt as though it was laughing at her and taking away the only sky she had ever liked. Would happiness always be too far for her to reach? There had to be something she could do..._

_ "I got it!" she nearly cheered out, rising to her feet. She could not hide how proud she was of herself for thinking of this plan. "I'll join SOLDIER! That way I'll hopefully be able to find where you are some day." Smiling bright, San looked back down to Noct. It was the best plan she could think of. Though still too young at the moment, as soon as she became old enough, she would join the military so that she could use it to find him, wherever her may be._

_ "You'd...join SOLDIER?" Noct asked, surprised that she would stick to such a plan at this age. Joining SOLDIER was not for the faint of heart. Though he had the utmost of confidence in her, it just never struck Noct that she would be the kind of person to join the military._

_ "Yeah!" she laughed out. "I'll join up as soon as I can and find you. I promise."_

_ A slow smile spread across his lips before he nodded. "All right. It's a promise."_

:::_  
_

San stared up at the ceiling of the church. Raising a hand, she reached out towards the patch of sky that could be seen. No matter what, any important moments she had with Noct seemed to be tied to the sky. To her, it just seemed like some cruel joke. The one thing she feared so much was forever connected to the only person she had cared about while growing up in the Slums. On the border of her vision, she saw another gloved hand trying to grasp at the distant sky. Rolling her head to the side, San blinked at Noct who was lying beside her upside-down.

"Does it still scare you?" he asked, his eyes drifting across the gap in the ceiling.

"A bit," she answered back, lowering her arm. Sighing, San shook her head and glanced solemnly up to the open sky. "I know it's a silly fear now...but I still can't get rid of it."

Noct made a thoughtful noise as he heard her reasoning. Rolling over, he hovered above her face, blocking out the sky completely from her view. For a moment, he just stared at her. "You know, someone like you really shouldn't be afraid of the sky so much." A grin parted his lips.

"Someone like me?" San did not hide her confusion. Someone like her...would that not give them more reason to be afraid of the sky than others?

"Yeah." A soft laugh escaped the young man before he tapped the side of his face. "Your eyes."

San's face scrunched up even more in confusion. Plus it was the first time in a long time she felt embarrassed. It was one thing to look someone in the eye, but it was another to have someone study them, even if it was a friend. "What about them?" she asked warily.

"They're like the sky," Noct smiled back. "Vast and unknown...and something that no one else can have a hold over. They suit you."

San could only laugh lightly to get past the moment. Still embarrassed, she rubbed her eyes so that she could hide them for a second. "Mako-infused eyes of a SOLDIER. People do say they look like the sky."

It was only slightly, but it was still enough for San to notice: Noct's expression fell as he moved out of her sight. "So you really did join SOLDIER, then, huh?"

"Yeah, or else I wouldn't have quite kept my promise."

"I guess..."

"Hey, who's that picture of anyway?" asked San once she could tell he had become upset at the matter of her being in SOLDIER. The only thing she thought that could account it was the fact he now lived in Tenebrae, and so as a SOLDIER, she was an enemy.

"Etro," he answered, looking over to the old painting. "It's odd, though I don't normally care for churches or art, being here is somehow soothing... I come here when I need a break from my duties." Sighing, Noct dusted off his pants as he rose.

"Duties?"

"As...a l'Cie..."

A sharp gasp escaped San as she suddenly sat up. A l'Cie...it just could not be! It was bad enough that he now lived in Tenebrae, the enemy of Gaia, but to be a l'Cie? She did not want to have to face him on the battlefield someday. Before, the fal'Cie and l'Cie had just been foes that needed to be destroyed in order to save their home—faceless opponents that she would kill. To now have her old friend be of the strongest forces Pulse had to offer...it tore at her worse than finding out he was moving. "Really?"

"Yeah..." His shoulders rose and fell as he breathed in deeply. "C'mon, we should get you out of here as quickly as possible."

That made San even more surprised. He was a l'Cie, she was SOLDIER, was it not his duty to destroy the enemy? In fact, was hers not the same? "Why?"

A laugh escaped Noct as he turned around, a smile back on his face. "Because you're a friend. And besides, I haven't gotten any orders yet to kill members of SOLDIER here." Holding out a hand, the young man tilted his head to the side. "If that's what you were worrying about, silly."

:::

San stared out at the open land before her. Noct had taken her past the edge of Tenebrae. From here on out, she would have to go on her own. She was not sure if had been a good thing or not that no one had interrupted them on their way out. It was nice to have things simple...but there were times when things could be _too_ easy. Shaking her head, San dismissed the matter. She was out and that was what mattered.

"Good luck, San," said Noct, stepping back. "Part of me hopes we don't see each other again...but I still hope that we do."

A wry smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. The next time they met it could very well be as enemies. "Yeah. See ya." The SOLDIER heard him turn away before she started on her own. Pausing, San blinked as she remembered something. She nearly smacked herself on her forehead for forgetting before she spun around and caught back up to Noct. Without him expecting it, she hugged him from behind, burying her head on his shoulder. "Found you..." she whispered into his coat.

"San..."

"I found you and I won't go losing you again any time soon." Pulling away, she made herself look to the sky. This time...it was not so scary. "We will meet again."

* * *

**A/N**: Yay, Noct, at last. Let the "love-triangle" begin.

I can definitely say I prefer writing for a fewer number of characters rather than a lot xD


	4. Chapter 4

IV

Running her hands through her hair, Alvina sat up on her bed. Ever since they had come back from Pulse, none of them had been quite the same. It was not as though they thought they would be a team forever, losses were bound to happen, especially in war, but to have it happen so soon was what shook them most. The only comfort they got was the fact they had not been given a new mission right away. When they would get a new one, however, they had no idea when it could happen. Any day now they could be sent back out into the field.

A long sigh escaped Alvina as she got up from her bed. Today was still like any other day, and so she had to get up and face it. Even after having to constantly get up so early, the redhead still hated the mornings. Did they really have to wake at such early times? Grumbling under her breath, she headed over to the bathroom to start her routine for the day. However, something stopped her from doing so.

Blinking in confusion, Alvina looked down to the other bed in her dorm. Someone was occupying that bed. With still being tired, Alvina rubbed her eyes several times to make sure what she saw was not a dream. How could San be back? This had to be Alvina's mind playing tricks on her.

Skeptic, the redhead moved to the side of the bed. She certainly _looked_ real enough. Leaning over her friend, Alvina poked her arm hard in attempts to wake her. The next thing she knew, she was on the floor, holding her forehead in pain.

San had been so startled at being woken up that she had bolted upright...and had had her head come into direct contact with Alvina's.

Both friends were left clutching their heads and moaning in pain. At least now Alvina knew that her friend also felt real.

"Son of a...!" hissed out Alvina.

"What _were_ you doing?" questioned San, barely able to open her eyes.

"Seeing if it really _was_ you! Which is pretty painfully obvious now." Rubbing her head, the redhead managed to rise. "Man, that sure is one way to make sure you're awake in the morning." San groaned in agreement and flopped back down on her bed. "Hey... Wait... When did you get back?"

"Late last night," she answered with a yawn. Much like Alvina, she was also not a morning person. "By the time I came in, you were already asleep."

The redhead stared at her friend for a long moment before she suddenly rose up and gave San a tight hug. The secluded SOLDIER cried out in surprise at the action and at the sudden weight. "It's good to have you back," murmured Alvina. "Team Havoc just wasn't the same without you."

San chuckled softly before patting her friend on the back. "And it wasn't the same without Team Havoc."

"Man, what happened to you? We thought you were dead! Or captured!" exclaimed Alvina as she pulled back.

Expression falling, San muttered, "Nice to know what order you guys thought that in."

Alvina then gave a quick gasp as something dawned on her, completely ignoring San's comment. "Oh, gosh! Everyone's gonna be so happy to see you! They won't believe it! C'mon, they should be in the cafeteria by now!" Alvina grinned as she pulled San's hand.

"Wait, what? Hey!" blurted out San as she was forcefully removed from her bed. Could seeing her friends again at least not wait a few minutes? "Alvinaaa!" cried out San in protest as her friend pulled her along.

:::

"You guys enjoying your breakfast?" asked Alvina as she sat down. Keeping quiet, San took the seat across from her.

"Same as always," muttered Squall as he glanced up. His Mako-infused eyes widened in surprise, but he otherwise managed to remain silent. Across from him, Cloud did not respond or look up. Out of the members of Team Havoc, he had taken the past few days the hardest. Remaining withdrawn and silent, he focused on his food and did not notice Squall trying to get his attention.

"Hey!" snapped Cloud once an empty cup hit him in the head. Rubbing where it hit, he shot a glare to Squall. The brunet sighed and tossed his head in the direction of where San sat. Giving a look of confusion, Cloud followed his gaze and promptly froze. "How did you— When did— Are you okay?" he asked out in a rush, fumbling over which question he should ask first.

"Other than tired, I'm fine," she answered with a wry smile.

"It's good to have you back," commented Squall with a nod of his head.

"It's good to _be_ back." The black-haired SOLDIER nodded back in thanks. Such a comment coming from him, San knew, meant a lot. Her expression suddenly fell as her stomach gave a rather loud rumble. It had been quite some time since she last had a decent meal.

Alvina let out a quick laugh. "Hungry?" she asked with a slight smirk. San could only nod in embarrassment. "All right. C'mon, Squall, help me get her some food." Before the brunet could protest, the redhead grabbed him by the arm and practically dragged him along. Cloud and San could only watch in surprise as Squall was helpless in the matter.

"Well...sure did miss seeing sights like that while I was gone," murmured San after sucking on her teeth.

"So...was it difficult to get back?" asked Cloud after a moment. He seemed unsure of how to lead a conversation between them at the moment.

"It was actually a lot easier than I thought. I guess they weren't really expecting a lone SOLDIER trying to make her way out." San shifted her weight uncomfortably. There was no need for them to know that her oldest friend, who was now a l'Cie, helped her out.

"Well, I'm just glad you're—"

"So the Chicken Wuss is back," commented a man who just reached their table.

San groaned inwardly and shot a glare to the other SOLDIER member. "Seifer," she sighed. "Haven't they assigned you a mission _yet_?"

"I should be getting one soon enough. And, unlike _some_ people, I won't mess up on my first one." Seifer gave a cold smirk.

"Hey! It wasn't her fault!" snapped Cloud.

"Ah yes, I heard it was a group failure. So much for the teamwork of the famed Team Havoc."

A tray was slammed down on the table, jostling the food on it. "You probably wouldn't have lasted five minutes had you been with us!" retorted Alvina now that she and Squall were back with food. "Good luck going up against blasted l'Cie."

"Tch, if I had gone, the job would have been finished before the l'Cie even showed up."

"So why not head on over to Pulse and prove it?" questioned Squall, standing taller. The two of them glared at each other. The tension was so high between the blond and brunet that it felt like sparks would start flying. The scars they wore on each of their faces was proof of how bad things could get between them.

"Ah! There you are, San!" cheered out a new voice. All five of them looked over to see the newcomer. "Was wondering where you were since you weren't in your room. Oh, Seifer? Don't you have somewhere you should be?" questioned Zack as he neared them.

Stiffening, Seifer gave a grudging nod. "Right, sir." Whether he really had somewhere to be or not, the SOLDIER member was quick to leave.

"You needed something, Zack?" asked San once the others seemed to have calmed down. Alvina slid over the tray of food before she sat down and began digging into the food she had gotten for herself. Though rather hungry, San waited until Zack was done with what he came here for.

"Yeah. Looks like the other higher-ups want to talk to you, San."

Her expression quickly fell as she glanced between him and the food before her. "Right now?"

"Afraid so." A sympathetic look crossed his face as he gave a helpless shrug. There was nothing he could do to change the matter.

A heavy sigh escaped San as she pushed herself up to stand. "All right. Let's get this over with. I'll talk to you guys later." With a nod of her head to her friends, she and Zack headed out of the cafeteria.

"San!" called out Cloud, hurrying after them for a moment.

Turning around, she blinked at Cloud and saw him quickly stop in his step. "Yes?"

He froze, seemingly unsure of what he should say. "I...I'm glad you're back safely," he mumbled, glancing away. "It wasn't the same without you around."

She gave a one-sided smile. "Thanks. I'll see you later."

:::

"San did _what_?"

"That's impossible."

"She would have told us about it first!"

"I'm sorry, but it's the truth," replied Zack. Crossing his arms, he shook his head. "I don't like it any more than you guys do, but it's out of our hands now. Your life as SOLDIERs shall go on, as such, you guys have a new mission and will be heading out in two days." With nothing more to say, Zack left them there completely stunned. First they receive bad news, and then are given barely any time to deal with it?

"It can't be true," protested Alvina, shaking her head in denial.

"Did she really quit?" asked Squall once Zack was gone.

"Why didn't she tell us...?" questioned Cloud softly.

Alvina reached out to the wall to help support herself up from the shock. "Leaving SOLDIER? That's...not like her! She'd always go on about a promise she had to fulfil while being with SOLDIER. She couldn't have left!"

"And why so suddenly?" pointed out Squall, cupping his chin in his hand. "She returns from Pulse, only to quit the day after?"

"Something has to be wrong," surmised Cloud. The others nodded in agreement. "But just what?"

:::

The three members of Team Havoc sat around outside the following day. The prospect of being sent out on a mission the next day before figuring out what had happened to San did not rest well with them.

"Has anyone been able to get a hold of her?" asked Squall.

"No, it's as though she's fallen off the world. I know she might not always answer her phone, but now I can't even get to her voicemail!" protested Alvina.

"I've been asking around, and no one else seems to know where she went," added Cloud.

"You guys want to know what really happened?" Heads turning in unison, the three looked to see who had spoken. Arms crossed, Zack stared solemnly at them.

"What _really_ happened? But _you_ were the one who told us she just quit." Alvina eyed the commander skeptically. Though they all liked Zack, this was not a matter they wanted to be messed around with.

"I had to," he sighed. Lowering his arms, he squatted down next to them. "Only the higher-ups were meant to know what was really going on. I was lucky enough to be allowed to know for being her commander." Zack placed a hand over the side of his face, as though in pain. "I can't believe this happened."

"What happened?" asked Cloud suddenly.

"You remember how she was during our mission to Pulse? Distracted at best, and then acting strangely at the end there. On top of that, she'd been having dreams for a while, ones that began to effect her while awake during your final evaluation."

"So that's what that was..." murmured Cloud.

"But what do her dreams have to do with all this?" questioned Alvina. Out of the members of Team Havoc, she was the only one who had known about them.

"Turns out the other higher-ups had been keeping tabs on her for a while; they knew about everything. When she came back, they wanted to 'talk' with her because they now needed her developing powers. They need her powers as a l'Cie to further their plans!" Zack slammed a fist into the ground in anger.

The members of Team Havoc could only sit there in a stunned silence.

"A...l'Cie?" breathed out Squall, being the first to find his voice.

"But...she..she's a SOLDIER! How can she be a l'Cie too?" questioned Alvina as she ran her hands through her hair.

"Hey, don't ask me about the details of that!" Zack said back in a hushed yell as he threw up his arms. "I always thought a l'Cie wouldda been found out and killed or captured for being over here, but to have one _living_ here all this time? I just don't get it!"

"Maybe...it's what they wanted," thought Cloud aloud. "Having a l'Cie over here that they could then use."

"What are they planning to do to her?" asked Alvina as she covered her mouth with her hand. "You said they needed her powers, but for what?"

"I don't know what they're planning... All I know is that it won't be good for San once they're finished with her."

"Where is she being held?" demanded Cloud.

A smirk crossed Zack's face. "I thought you'd ask that." The commander rose, dusting off his hands. "She's being held at the highest floor of the Science Department in the Shin-Ra building. Hey, wait!" Zack had to shout after Cloud for the SOLDIER had already started to leave.

"We can't just go barging in there!" called out Alvina as she hurried after him.

"We have to plan this," commented Squall as he crossed his arms, moving to bar Cloud's path.

A light scoff escaped Cloud. "You guys are acting like you're coming along."

"Oh, please. Like you could get in there and rescue her on your own," muttered Alvina as she poked the blond.

"We have a better chance of success if we work together. We know Shin-Ra, and it's not as though we're their enemy. What could be done by one person should be even easier for three." Squall stared firmly at Cloud, not backing down an inch.

"She's our friend too..." added Alvina.

Cloud sighed and shook his head as he laughed to himself. "Right... Guess if you guys are gonna come along no matter what, it would be best to have us all working together."

"Well, then you guys would want to go in at night," commented Zack as he reached their side. "After hours, that way there won't be so many people. I'd normally be willing to help you guys get her back—"

"We all know what going after her means," said Cloud before Zack could finish. "We wouldn't ask that of you."

"Yeah, someone has to keep looking after all our other friends here. 'Sides, you got Aeris to worry about too," teased Alvina with a grin.

"Yeah," chuckled Zack as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Say hi to San for me."

"You bet."

:::

The three SOLDIER members stared up at the Shin-Ra building. Even with it being after hours, nearly all the lights were on inside. Such was the nature of a corporation building inside Midgar. Thanks to Make energy, very few felt the need to be conservative in their energy use. As the friends stared up at the building, it was like it was taunting them, challenging them to try and rescue their friend.

"Shall we go charging in, or go in discretely?" asked Cloud, gripping his sword that hung over his back.

"I vote the front!" responded Alvina as she spun her chakrams around. "Teach them a lesson for kidnapping San like they did!"

Squall looked down at the barrel of his gunblade and checked the bullets. "I say we should be discrete. We don't need to waste more time by fighting."

Cloud weighed both of their points for a moment. "Discretely it is then. Besides, I don't think San would want us hurting others while we are rescuing her."

Alvina let out a sigh as she shrugged. "I beg to differ..."

"Whatever. Let's just get her out of there."

With their plan set, the three SOLDIERs hurried off towards one of the side entrances, sticking to the shadows. The Shin-Ra guards that protected the side entrance they were at did not know what hit them. One moment they were patrolling the area, and the next they were unconscious on the ground. Not wasting any more time than they had two, the three of them hurried on into the stairwell.

Thanks to their training, the climb up the stairs was an easier task for them compared to some. Even so, it was still a long climb. They had forgotten just how tall the Shin-Ra building really was, and to think that this stairwell did not even reach the top of it. The Science Department was part of the central structure and was not connected directly to the stairwell they were in.

"See, if we had gone in the way _I_ suggested, we'd have knocked out a few more guards and would be rescuing San about now!" panted out Alvina after she lost count of how many flights of stairs they had traversed. "But noooo, you wanted to take the _long_ way!"

"We're here now, so just deal with it!" snapped back Cloud, the run up the stair not taking any visible toll on him. Now was not the time to be worn down by such things. They were on a mission that had no room for messing up.

"What the?" shouted out Squall as they all suddenly stopped.

"We didn't do anything!" yelled out Alvina over the noise of the wailing siren. It was true. While inside the stairwell, they had come across no other Shin-Ra members, and had not done anything that would have set off the alarm.

"Let's check it out, we're near the end of this stairwell anyway." Scaling the last few stairs, Cloud hurried on through the nearest door, the other two not far behind. As soon as they burst into the main part of the building, they saw just how hectic it was. Shin-Ra guards were running all over the place, as though they were not quite certain how to handle this matter.

"Get that l'Cie!"

"All forces of Pulse must be stopped!"

"But, how can we go up against a l'Cie?"

"For Shin-Ra!"

"A l'Cie?" blinked Cloud as they watched the confusion.

"Could San have escaped?" asked Alvina, hope in her voice.

"Only one way to find out," murmured Squall, closing the door behind him.

"Hey! You! You're not meant to be here!" shouted out a Shin-Ra guard that spotted them. The man aimed his riffle to them. "Leave immediately before—aaaarrgh!" The man cried out in pain as he suddenly gripped his newly-wounded leg.

"Now we're their enemy." Squall calmly lowered his gunblade.

"More Pulse forces?" shouted out a new Shin-Ra guard that noticed the commotion they caused.

"They don't seem like l'Cie."

"Stop them!"

"So much for not hurting anyone!" laughed out Alvina as she charged into the Shin-Ra guards. Cloud and Squall glanced at each other before they too joined the battle. As much as they did not like the fact they were on the side of those that helped to kidnap their friend, the SOLDIERs did not bring themselves to kill the Shin-Ra guards. True, an accident could happen in this mess, but they still tried their hardest to merely incapacitate the Shin-Ra guards.

"Not that way! The l'Cie's coming from over there!" shouted out a man as a group of Shin-Ra guards came fleeing it.

"But we have these three over here!"

"Dammit, we're surrou—" A gurgling noise cut off the guard as he slumped down to the ground. A pool of blood began to seep from where a weapon protruded from his back. It appeared that the l'Cie they faced cared not whether those in Shin-Ra survived.

Cloud stared at the dead body and then looked up to the far end of the room. If that person he saw entering was the l'Cie, then San certainly had not escaped.

The man walked calmly in, seeming almost relaxed in the fray. He held no weapons in his hands, yet any attack sent to him was immediately deflected. It was like there was a wall around him, a _moving_ wall. His dark hair and clothing only added to the ominous feeling he had about him.

Cursing under his breath, Cloud hurried in taking down the Shin-Ra guards nearest him. He only hoped that once they were knocked unconscious, the l'Cie would not kill them. A sudden blow sent Cloud stumbling back, but it was from no Shin-Ra guard, they were all dealt with. The SOLDIER stared in amazement at the weapons that hung in the air around him. Each began to attack him as if they had their own will. With their relentless assault, Cloud was forced to split his sword so that he could deflect the attacks better. Sensing that there was a danger behind him, he gripped his sword tight and whirled around for an attack.

"Wait!" shrieked out Alvina.

Breathing hard, Cloud glared into the red eyes of the dark-haired man, his sword mere hairs away from his neck. Like him, the l'Cie was also breathing hard, but he still managed to seem relaxed in his current situation. His red eyes darted down to the blade by his neck, and then moved over to something that was beside Cloud. Reluctant to take his eyes off the l'Cie, Cloud followed his gaze and then saw the sword that was at his own neck. With the adrenaline rushing through him, the SOLDIER had not felt the cold steel that pressed lightly onto his neck, or the small trickle of blood that began to drip down.

"He's a l'Cie," growled out Cloud, his cold eyes meeting the blood-red ones once again. "He's the enemy!"

"So? If you kill him for that reason alone, then what are we rescuing San for?"

Cloud cursed under his breath. By his logic, San would have been considered an enemy too. What was more surprising to him, though, and the other SOLDIERs, was seeing the man with the blood-red eyes back up a step.

"You... You're rescuing San?"

"You know her?" questioned Squall, his gunblade still aimed at the man.

"Osana Aella?" By their stunned silence, he took that as confirmation. "Yeah, I know her."

"How?" breathed out Cloud.

The l'Cie shook his head. "That's for another time. Is...she really a l'Cie?"

"Apparently," sighed Alvina. "Who are you and why are you here?"

"My name is Noctis and I was sent here to rescue the l'Cie you captured."

"You're here to rescue _San_?" asked Squall with a raised eyebrow.

Noct shook his head. "I had no idea she would be here. I was sent for the three l'Cie captured a few days ago. But...if San's really been captured..."

"Then are we on the same side here?" questioned Alvina warily.

Looking back to Cloud, Noct seemed to weigh the options before him. "For now..." he finally muttered. As though it was the most difficult thing for him to do at the moment, Noct slowly lowered his sword from Cloud's neck. The SOLDIER also lowered his weapon once the l'Cie moved away. Only once Noct was no longer paying attention to the SOLDIER did Cloud quickly check to see how bad the wound on his neck was.

"Okay. Let's hurry before more guards show up. And no more killing them!" warned Alvina as she held up a finger to Noct. "San wouldn't like that." A reluctant sigh escaped the l'Cie before he hurried on into the building. The three SOLDIERs shared glances at each other. It might be in their best interest to work with this Noctis for now, but that did not mean they had to enjoy it. His triggering of the alarm was going to make things a bit more difficult now.

Any members of Shin-Ra they passed were quickly dealt with. Much to their surprise, Noctis listened to their request of no longer killing anyone. His spectacular abilities made the remainder of their rescue mission seem as easy as the first half.

"San should be here somewhere!" announced Cloud as they exited an elevator. Hurrying past all the experiments that littered tables, the SOLDIERs and l'Cie made their way into the Science Department of the Shin-Ra building. Nothing was what they were looking for, until...

"San!" shouted out Cloud and Noctis together. Ahead of them was San, suspended in what seemed like a giant test tube filled with, what they suspected was, Mako Energy. Her once-black hair was back to its original shade of blue, strands of it floating in the Make energy. Rushing forward, the SOLDIER and l'Cie joined forces and smashed open the glass. The liquid form of Mako Energy spilled out across the floor, a siren atop of the tube joining the already-blaring alarms.

Her body limp from being unconscious, San fell out and into Noct's arms who was quick to catch her.

"Is she okay?" asked Alvina as she and Squall neared. The two SOLDIERs still kept their eye on where they had come from, watching out for any more guards.

Reaching to her neck, Cloud checked her pulse. "She's alive." All of them breathed a sigh of relief. He suddenly pulled his hand back as San let out a coughing fit, bolting upright in the process. "San!"

The SOLDIER tried to regain her breathing. "G-guys? Wha...what's going on? Noct!" Her Mako-infused eyes fell on her childhood friend. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"To rescue the other l'Cie that were captured," he answered as he helped her to stand.

San cast her eyes down. "They're...they're dead. By the time I was brought here, they were dead. Noct, I'm sorry..." Clenching a fist, the l'Cie cursed under his breath.

"Um, might want to speed things up here," commented Squall. "We got company." Looking over to the entrance of the Science Department, the friends gasped as they saw who had been called in to help with the matter.

"You three had such potential. How unfortunate," murmured Sephiroth. Drawing his unique katana, the silver-haired man stared down at the SOLDIERs and l'Cie.

"Who is that?" breathed out Noctis, one of weapons appearing in his hand.

"Sephiroth," answered Cloud. "One of the strongest SOLDIERs ever."

"And you have the l'Cie with you," continued Sephiroth, his deep voice remaining steady. "I suppose I should thank you for making this easier for me."

"We need to go..." whispered out San. "We need to go!"

A smirk crossed the silver-haired man's face for a moment before he rushed forward. Mere feet away from the group, he stopped, and was repelled.

Holding out his hand, Noctis breathed deeply, as though he had just used a great amount of his strength. Other weapons that were under his control whirled around the 1st Class SOLDIER, keeping him occupied. "That won't hold him for long..." rasped out Noctis.

"This way!" called out Alvina as she hurried down their only possible way for escape. Not wasting a second, they hurried after the redhead.

"Where are we going?" asked Noct as they raced further up the Shin-Ra building.

"I don't know, I'm making this up as I go!" With no where else to go, the SOLDIERs and l'Cie burst through a door and were met by the cool night air.

"Over here, yo!" called out a voice. All of them could not help but stare over at the helicopter that was waiting on the landing.

"Reno!" cried out Alvina in surprise.

"Come to stop us?" asked Squall, gripping his gunblade.

"Are you kidding? How else did you guys plan on leaving this place?" laughed out Snow as he stepped forward. "You can leave it to the _real_ heroes from here on out."

"Why are you helping us?" questioned Cloud skeptically.

"Are you _really_ gonna worry about details _now_? We gotta move! Just get on the damn helicopter!" Waking them to move quickly, the Turks were quick to scramble back into the helicopter. The SOLDIERs looked at each other. With a shrug, Alvina was the first to accept the offer, Noct being the last. It was not as though they had a multitude of options.

"Leaving your bald friend behind again?" asked San as she leaned back against a seat inside. Even after all she had been through, she still had enough strength to throw out a sarcastic comment.

"Gotta have someone on the inside you can trust," smirked the Turk as he put on his headphones. "Take her up!" After the doors of the helicopter were closed, the vehicle came to life and they quickly flew up in the air. Peering out the window, Cloud watched as Sephiroth came outside and peered up at them, his hair being tossed about by the wind. The blond watched as he, and his life as a SOLDIER, were left behind.

Sitting back down properly, he looked at his friends, and the l'Cie that sat by San. For him at least, it was worth it.

:::

Only once the sun had risen did the Turks finally land the helicopter. Now that they were a safe distance from Midgar, for the time being, did they take a break to plan what to do next.

"Why did you guys help us?" asked Squall once he jumped down from the helicopter

"Zack told us what was going on, and we wanted to help." Reno dusted off his suit jacket.

"That doesn't really answer the question..."

"What, can't Turks have some sense of moral?"

"I didn't think they did."

"Speak for yourself, SOLDIER," huffed out Snow.

"All right, guys," interjected Alvina, stepping in between the two sides. "They helped us. We're here now. Let's move on."

"You guys shouldn't have come," sighed out Cloud. His eyes fell from the Turks to the other members of SOLDIER. "_All_ of you. Now we're all gonna be branded traitors."

"Don't you bring that up again," muttered out Alvina as she crossed her arms. "We knew what this meant from the moment we decided to save San."

"All of you should have left when you had the chance," sighed out a calm voice. Looking over, all eyes fell onto Noct as he leaned against the side of the helicopter, his arms crossed. "I would have been able to get her out of there. None of you would be in this mess."

Reno blinked a couple times. "Anyone wanna fill us is on who this guy is?"

"Noctis..." sighed the man from Pulse.

"He's a l'Cie," added Cloud, glaring lightly at the dark-haired man.

"No kidding, a real l'Cie?" breathed out Snow, more amazed than worried. Sighing, Noct shifted his weight uncomfortably and looked away. "You must be pretty strong to have gotten all the way in there by yourself!"

"You're _praising_ a l'Cie?" asked Reno, his expression falling.

"Hey, just because someone's an enemy doesn't mean you shouldn't respect their skills."

"Whatever," murmured Squall. "What do we do now?"

"You go back and say l'Cie forced you to do what you did. Maybe you can get your lives back," grunted Noct.

"And what do we do? Just _leave_ San?" Alvina glared softly as she crossed her arms. "I'm not leaving my friend."

"Where...is San?" asked Cloud. Everyone blinked and looked around. The SOLDIER they had put their lives on the line to save was no where to be seen. They had thought she had remained in the helicopter, but that was clearly not the case.

"Man, not again!" groaned Reno.

"I'll go find her." Quickly excusing himself, Cloud went off to find the missing SOLDIER. He did not have to go far before he saw her standing by the edge of a lake at the bottom of the hill they were near. "San, c'mon. We need to decide what to do next."

"Why...why did you guys come and save me?" she asked quietly.

"You really can't figure out why?" He sighed and walked up to her side. "You're our friend. You think we we'd just leave you there like that?"

"But now you can't go back because of what happened! I didn't want you guys to throw your lives away for me!"

"We knew what helping you meant—"

"I don't think you do!" she snapped back. "Don't you get it, Cloud? I'm a _l'Cie_! Danger to Gaia. The target for SOLDIERS to kill... Enemy of you..."

Cloud stared at her for a moment. Never had he seen her seem so torn up over something. "I know..." he sighed. "I know..." There were times when one just had to act, where thinking about something would only mess it up. Now, he felt, was one of those times. Moving closer, he quickly pulled her into an embrace before he could convince himself to do otherwise. "And I don't care!" he whispered, holding her tighter. "You're not an enemy."

She tried to say something back, but no words escaped her lips. In the end, all she could do was hug him back. That, though, meant more than any amount of words did.

"C'mon," he sighed, pulling away. "Let's figure out what we need to do next." His tossed his head and indicated her to follow as he headed back up the hill.

The others remained around the helicopter in a tense silence. As San and Cloud came back, they all seemed to relax.

"San, are you gonna be okay?" asked Alvina as she came forward, taking a hold of San's hands. The SOLDIER gave a weak smile and nodded. "What did they do to you?"

Casting her eyes down, San remained silent for a while. "They used the l'Cie powers...to bring about a means to end the war..."

"What?" asked everyone in unison.

"How are they gonna do that?" questioned Squall.

"Meteor... They've summoned Meteor. They want to annihilate Pulse once and for all!"

"They really...summoned Meteor?" breathed out Snow. The tall man slammed a fist against the side of the helicopter. "Those _idiots_! Meteor would destroy Pulse, sure, but it'll destroy Gaia as well!"

"That's sure one way to end the war," grimaced Reno.

"What are we gonna do?" asked Alvina.

"We stop it," answered Cloud.

"Yeah, okay, that sounds good," nodded Reno. He suddenly threw up his arms. "_How_?"

"There is a way," murmured the l'Cie that still leaned against the helicopter. Once again, all eyes fell onto him. "There is a way to stop Meteor."

"Okay, then you answer my question: how?"

"I don't know." Reno smacked his palm against his forehead at the answer. Standing up, Noct looked over the residents of Gaia. "But there is a way. We just won't find it here."

"Where do we have to go?" questioned San, though all of them there already knew there could be only one answer.

"We go to Pulse."

* * *

**A/N**: With that ends the Final Fantasy VII "half" of the story, let the Final Fantasy XIII side begin.

And, at last, Squall's not the only FFVIII character in the story (though he is the main one).

I was debating whether or not to have Zack join them in leaving Gaia, but there will be enough characters to deal with. And I figured it was "best" for him to remain behind (as much as I'd love to still have him around for the next bits).

So yeah, this story is already nearing its end (it was intended as a short fan fic). Just a few more chapters and that'll probably be it.

Prepare to see many more faces from FFXIII to show up now! I hope at least people are enjoying this xP


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